Metallic fence-post



(No M0001.) 4

AW. M. PRESLER.

METALLIC FENCE POST.

N0. 410,020. Paten-ted Aug. 27, 1080'.

ff Y

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM M. .PRESLER, OF ADRIAN, OHIO.

METALLIC FENCE-POST.V

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 410,020, dated August 27, 1889.

I Application iled January 17, 1889. Serial No. 296,574. (No model.)

T0 all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that l, WILLIAM M. PRESLER, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Adrian,in the county of Seneca and State of Ohio,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Metallic Fence-Posts, of which the following is a speciiication, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to a metallic fencepost; and it consists in certain details of construction and combination of parts, which will first be described in connection with the accompanying drawings, and then pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a front elevation of a post constructed in accordance with myinvention as it appearswhen readyto be set in the ground. Fig. 2 is also a front elevation showing the post as it appears when set in the ground. Fig.3 is a front elevation of a panel fence, in which the posts are shown in side elevation.

In constructing my fence-post A, I take a rod of iron or other suitable metal, which may be either round, half-round, square, or other desired shape in cross-section, and bend it into the form of a staple, thus forming two parallel bars a, united at the top and standing a suitable distance apart, as seen in the drawings. I then flatten the ends of the bars a to increase the holding surface, and sharpen them by beveling them outward on the inner side, as seen at b. Furthermore,I incline the lower ends of the bars outward, as seenI at c, which outward inclination, together with the outward bevel of the lower ends of the bars a, cause them to diverge from each other when the post is driven into the ground, as seen in Fig. 2. This divergence of the bars would not cease at the ground-line but would extend to the top of the post, and thus destro)T the parallelism of the bars were no means used to prevent it.

To preserve the parallelism of the bars a and for other useful purposes which will presently appear, I employ a metallic loop or link B, which I place loosely over the bars. In driving the post this link rests on the ground, as seen in the drawings, and serves to steady the post While being driven, and at the same time it prevents the bars from diverging above the ground-line. Another very important function of the lilik will be apparent on referring to Fig. 3, which shows the weight of the fence resting upon the links with a tendency to force them down hard over the diverging portions of the post, so that the greater the weight upon the links the tighter they draw on the bars, and consequently the firmer the post is fixed in the ground. The link also serves to a great extent to prevent lateral movement of the post in the ground.

My post is well suited for a board fence made in panels, as seen in Fig. 3, in which case the ends of the boards of the respective panels overlap in thepost; or it may be used to great advantage in rail fences, which will be straight, the ends of the rails resting on top of each other between the bars of the post in an obvious manner. In using my post in the building of wire fence my idea is to secure the wires to the edges of narrow strips of board, and secure the strips in position by first placing the posts over them and then driving the posts into the ground. As iron fences are usually made in panels, it is obvious that my post can be used with them.

In driving the post into the ground (using an ordinary maul for the purpose) I iirst place a piece of plank or soantling between its bars a, filling the space fully for from two to tWo and a half feet above the link. While the post is being driven its bars will pass down freely through the link, and as their lower ends are bent outward they will gradually curve outward more and more the farther they sink into the earth. If the post were to be driven without the space between its bars having been filled, as above described, the parallelism of the bars would be destroyed, for inasmuch as the link would act in the manner of a fulcrum the tendency of the bars would be toward each other at some point above the link with' a consequent outward bulging at other points.

I am aware that staple-shaped fence-posts, per se, are not new 5 but I am not aware of the existence prior to my invention of a stapleshaped post whose bars were bent outward at ZOO their lower ends and encircled byaverticallysli din g link, whereby without the employment of a spreading-block or other kindred device the said ends of the bars would be caused to spread apart while the post was being driven without affecting the parallelism of the bars above the ground-line.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A fence-post constructed of a metallic rod bent into staple shape forming,` two parallel bars standing; arsuit-able distance apart for the purpose set forth, the lower ends of which are sharpened and bent outwardly,in combination with a vertically-sliding' link encircling said bars and designed to rest on or near the ground when the post is set, substantially as described.

2. A fence-post constructed ot' a metallic rod bent into staple shape forming, two parallel bars standing' a suitable distan ce apart for the purpose set forth, the lower portions of which are bent outwardly an (l beveled on their inner sides outwardly io their ends, in combination with a vertically-slidinglink encircling` said bars and designed to rest on or near the ground when the post is set, substantially as described.

3. A fence-post constructed of a metallic rod bent into staple shape forming two parallel bars standing` a suitable distance apart for the purpose set forth, the lower portions of which are bent outwardly and beveled on their inner sides outwardly to their ends, which are iattened, in combination with a verticallysliding` link encircling,` said bars and designed to rest on or near the ground when the post is set, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof Iatlix my signatu re in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM M. PRESLER.

Vitnessesz M. A. SMALLEY, H L. HOPKINS. 

